Volume 4, Issue 56 Carleton College, Northfield, MN May 24, 2006 The Five+ Sexualities By Julie Nicol ‘07 In 1993, Anne Fausto-Sterling published a tongue-in-cheek yet pioneering article IN THIS ISSUE that transformed how many groups, from feminist theorists to the medical commu- nity, conceive of sex as a biological category. It is essential to note first that sex and gender are two very different, although interconnected concepts. As the World The Five+ Sexualities Health Organization defines them, sex is the “biological and physiological charac- teristics that define men and women” whereas gender refers to “the socially con- Queerness and Perform- structed roles, behaviors, activities, and attributes that a given society considers ance Art appropriate for men and women.” “Journey to Safety” Brings Theater and Hu- Fausto-Sterling proposed that we expand our dichotomous two-sex system into a paradigm that more accurately reflects the reality of human physiology. Thus she man Rights Together suggested including merm, herm, and ferm, in addition to man and woman, as In the News designations of sex. Herms, or “true” hermaphrodites have both an ovary and a testis, or a combined gonad called an ovo-testis. Ferms, or female pseudohermaph- Senior Reflections rodites, have testis but feminized external genitalia. Merms, male pseudohermaph- rodites have external male genetalia and ovaries. These five categories more accu- rately reflect the reality of human genetics and development than the dualistic two-sex system. However, the terms ‘hermaphrodite’ and ‘pseudohermaphrodite’ are misleading and greatly stigmatizing. Sex expression varies along a Continued on page 2 Queerness and Performance Art By Dominic Vendell ‘09 Queer. Everyone has their own opinion about what it class I am taking this term. Performance art, which has al- means, whether it should be used. Everybody seems ways aimed at subverting the mainstream and forging a new to have a very personal reason method of artistic expression, seems to me to be inherently tied to the notion of queer- for supporting or objecting to Performance art, which has the word, and consequently, ness. Since its reclamation in the second common ground is difficult to always aimed at subverting half of the twentieth century by activist find. My experience with the the mainstream, seems to groups working on issues such as HIV/ word may resonate with others’ AIDS, “queer” has been used to describe me to be inherently tied to the outside experience of LGBT people. A experiences and forms an essen- the notion of queerness. tial component of the empower- queer space is one that is not normal, but ment I have discovered at instead empowered and alive in its other- Carleton. ness. This sense of the word beautifully complements the consciously differentiated, subversive spirit of performance For me, “queer” will always be tied to the perform- art. ance art I discovered as part of the Queer Theater Continued on page 3 The GSC offers resources and support on women’s, men’s, and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender issues. We work with other campus organizations and offices to strengthen and sustain an inclusive campus community that promotes gender equality and awareness and welcomes people of all sexual orientations and gender identities by providing support, educational resources and advocacy. Page 2 Five+ Sexualities cont. continuum and those between the ‘traditional’ definitions of man Obviously several problems arise from this linear continuum. and woman are perhaps better termed “intersex.” When gender First is the issue of categorization. I believe that sexuality is fluid identity is taken into account, we are left with a veritable mé- and dynamic over time. As such, I would prefer to conceive of lange of sex-gender identities and classifications. sexuality, as well as sex and gender, in boundless terms. However, our In recent decades, the concept of fluid and dynamic sex and gen- culture as a whole, including the der identities has taken firm hold among feminist and queer theo- queer community, has not yet rists, and to a certain degree, among mainstream society. A simi- reached this stage. As such, I think it lar flexibility has been afforded to sexuality, defined here as the beneficial for language to more ac- orientation of a person’s sexual attraction. However, as individu- curately reflect reality. If one wishes als endeavor to explore their sexuality, they are met with pres- to emphasize the dynamism of their sure, from both within and outside of the queer community, to own sexuality, a declaration of ori- label and limn their sexuality. entation can be prefaced with “currently” or “transiently.” How- ever, I think the negative reactions most people will feel upon People who are coming out, and even people who have been out reading or hearing this is an excellent indicator of just how much for years, are met with the expectation that they must delimit we value static identities and the importance of knowing oneself, their particular brand of gayness. There are many reasons behind including one’s future self. this compulsion to name, but it is the least insidious that I am focused on in this article: ease of dating, desire to accurately ex- Secondly, and more importantly, this linear continuum presup- press one’s identity, and desire to connect with others similar to poses the dichotomous existence of two mutually exclusive yourself in minority status. Yet, lately I have noticed a dearth of sexes/genders. It is perhaps more useful to conceive of identity language surrounding sexuality that hinders the ability to name as, in the words of Leah Entenmann, “a magical glowing orb.” oneself with precision. Many of us, myself included, have been But, again, the vast majority of people think of identity in terms reduced to using numbers as a caveat – I’m 15% gay! Really? of axes, which are usually expected to run parallel to one another. I’m a four on the Kinsey scale! In this case, I am more hesitant to espouse this deterministic lan- Thus, similarly to Fausto-Sterling’s guage for fear that it works to reinforce current conceptions of half serious innovation, I propose identity. As such, I hope that while these terms may (or may not) the following vocabulary to facili- be useful in your daily life, that you don’t take them all too seri- tate communicating within the ously. queer community, which includes our allies: 3rd annual Asexual – no current sexual attractions (regardless of emotional or physical attractions) Autoerotic – attracted primarily to ones own body Passively Straight – compulsory heterosexuality Actively Straight – reflectively and consciously heterosexual Open – does not necessarily adopt a queer identity, but is open to queer sexual experiences Heteroflexible1 – primarily hetero, with queer tendencies Bish (Bi-ish) – mostly straight but with 10-20% gay leanings Bisexual2 – ambiguously queer Ambisexual3 – equally attracted to men and women Pansexual/Omnisexual – attracted to all genders, intentionally inclu- October 6-8, 2006 sive of transsexual and intersexed individuals Gish (Gay-ish) – mostly gay but with 10-20% straight leanings Heterocurious – predominantly gay, with some hetero attractions 3rd annual LGBT Family Reunion! Gay – homosexual (it is assumed that in this heteronormative society, all gays are “actively” gay) Many events throughout the weekend for alums, friends and current students. 1. I have intentionally abandoned the term “bi-curious” because I think it has too much baggage and is past the point of reclamation. 2. Bisexual is also a term loaded with preconceptions and negative stereotypes. However, I think it is too historically important to abandon, and so I take it to Mark your calendars! mean anything and everything between the two extremes of the (artificial) continuum, that is, from heteroflexible to heterocurious. 3. What bisexual is sometimes, and inappropriately, taken to mean. Page 3 “Journey to Safety” Brings Theater and Human Rights Together By Leah Entenmann ‘06 Becky Palmer, a staff attorney at the Women's Program, says that Minnesota Advocates for Human Rights is an internationally although the report took researchers twice as long as they had known non-governmental human rights organization based in anticipated to compile, the real challenge is in using this informa- Minneapolis. Their Women's Program has done documentation tion to raise awareness and affect change in Minnesota systems. and fact-finding to produce human rights re- The report is long and technical, and the urgency of ports at the requests of women's organizations its message is often lost in the reading. Luckily, all over the world, including projects in Central Pangea World Theater, a multicultural production and Eastern Europe, Latin America and else- company that has worked with Minnesota Advo- where. Although Minnesota Advocates also cates in the past, took on the task of adapting the runs various education and advocacy programs report into an engaging and powerful play. in Minnesota, their first report on domestic hu- Meena Natarajan, along with six actors and an ar- man rights issues came out only recently. tistic director, read the entirety of the report to find Women from various Minneapolis and St. Paul key themes and quotations to incorporate into the immigrant organizations came forward to re- script. Natarajan's script involves several vignettes quest an investigation into the ways police, highlighting the difficulty of sorting through paper- judges, and policy respond to gender-based violence in immigrant work in another language; misunderstanding by police in an and refugee communities. The report, entitled "The Government emergency situation; hostility from government officials; misrep- Response to Domestic Violence against Immigrant and Refugee resentation by interpreters; pressures from community members; Women in the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area," details how the and the exacerbating effects of complicated immigration and resi- particular ways women's immigrant status exacerbates difficulties dency policies.